This invention relates to a process for treating tobacco and particularly for the purposes of reducing the content therein of nicotine and tar for use of the tobacco in smoking materials.
The use of tobacco particularly in smoking materials has received much condemnation from health authorities on the grounds that particularly the tar and nicotine content can be injurious to the health of the smoker or to those around the smoker. Over the years therefore the tobacco industry have attempted to reduce the amount of tar and nicotine passing from the cigarette or other smoking material to the user generally by providing filters of different types to extract the unwanted materials. Generally however there has been no reduction of the amount of tar or nicotine in the actual smoking material itself and the filter has been relied upon to filter out the materials rather than to have them removed in a previous process.
This technique is of course less satisfactory because the filter can only operate to a certain efficiency and also because much of the smoke does not in fact pass through the filter for example when the cigarette is merely burning in an ashtray.
Attempts have been made therefore over the years to develop process for reducing the tar and nicotine content of tobacco in a step prior to the manufacture of the cigarette.
It is believed however that none of the techniques has been satisfactory since there remains a strong requirement in the tobacco industry for a technique for reducing the tar and nicotine content of the tobacco and much interest is expressed in processes of this type.
It is accordingly one object of the present invention to provide an improved process for treating tobacco.
According to the invention, therefore, it is provided a process for treating tobacco comprising passing through the tobacco in combination steam and starch.
According to the second aspect of the invention, it is provided a process for treating tobacco comprising reducing the content therein of nicotine and tar by applying thereto a vapor obtained by boiling a mixture of water with a material having the characteristics of
(a) It vaporizes with water; PA1 (b) It acts as an absorbent for nicotine and tar.
In a small scale trial of the technique according to the present invention the following process parameters can be employed: